When my children are little, I start introducing crayons and coloring. I like to save their little pieces of artwork and jot down their age at the time, so we can look back on their projects years down the road. It can be hard to decide how to store these activities and keep them from piling up on the kitchen counter. A simple storage solution for kids art helped me preserve … [Read more...]
Spin-Off Activities: No Lesson Plan Required
How can one activity spring off into multiple others? It happens a lot in our house! It’s exciting to follow the interests of our children to expand their learning. First, we had dyed egg shells when were did the dying egg shells activity. When I was cleaning up our supplies, my son asked, “What color will it be if we pour them all together?” He was talking about all … [Read more...]
Hanger Scale DIY Toy
Helping children explore the scientific method, creating conversations about weight and numbers, and doing it all inexpensively is a lesson worth teaching. Whether you homeschool or supplement your child's learning at home, this DIY toy scale made out of a hanger is simple and engaging. You can make it in 3 simple steps! Use the hanger scale to compare the weights … [Read more...]
Cupcake Topper Math Facts Activity
Cupcake toppers are fun decorations, but they can be turned into a simple math facts activity for young elementary school aged kids. Often you can find seasonal items like these Spring cupcake toppers in the dollar aisles and discount bins in your local store. I found little spring flower themed cupcake toppers in the wonderful Target Dollar aisle, and created a math facts … [Read more...]
Patterns for Infants, Toddlers, and Preschool
Creating patterns can be taught to infants, toddlers and preschoolers. Clapping your hands and encouraging your infant to mimic your claps is exposing him/her to patterns. If your toddler falls down, stands up and does not cry, and you applaud them saying, "Yay!" (and they do it again to get the same response), they have recognized a pattern. Children are never too young to … [Read more...]
How Parents Teach Socialization
Socialization is the most over-used term in the parenting world-and early childhood education world-these days…and often the most misinterpreted. We stay-at-home moms are not depriving our children of proper socialization, we are actually providing the best form of it. The definition of socialization, from dictionary.reference.com is: … [Read more...]
Books on CD Recorded by You
My husband deployed for a year back when my oldest son was 6 months old. It was a job of mine to teach my son about his dad. Without the daily interactions of a parent and an infant, that memory of "dad" would not be established. It is a reality for families whose breadwinner travels a lot. Our solution was to do a few things to keep my husband present in our daily life and one … [Read more...]
Bath Time Activities
I have heard from some parents that the less toys they have in the tub the better they like it, because they just want baths to be quick. I think giving kids some fun bath time activities can make bath time time that I get to sit for a bit. How often in your day do you get to take a load off while the kids stay busy? In my house the second I sit, my kids have some radar … [Read more...]
Exposure to Print: Make a Word Wall
This post contains affiliate links. Please view my disclosure. A word wall is an activity that I start when my children are toddlers. It is part of our homeschool preschool activities, and I know that it helps my children learn to read with confidence. Play does matter in the lives of young children, but we can also teach them along the way. A word wall is a great way to use … [Read more...]
Play and Learning at the Playground
You do not have to be bored sitting and watching your children play at the playground. There are simple ways to connect the outdoor playtime with simple, fun activities and learning at home too. I tend to look at a visit to the playground as my chance to sit and watch-finally! I am up and down on my feet all day: up the stairs, down the stairs, criss-crossing the house. I … [Read more...]
How to be a Great Stay-at-Home Mom
This post contains affiliate links. Please view my disclosure for more info. It used to bother me, when I was in my teaching program, when teachers and professors talked to us like we knew more about raising children than the parents. I was a 20-something student who had a lot of babysitting experience, but I was not a mom at the time. What did I know about parenting? Sure, … [Read more...]
Maximize Your Time As A Stay-at-Home Mom
I used to get bored as stay-at-home mom. Those days made me question whether being a stay-at-home mom was worth it. As a former teacher, and a child who had a stay-at-home mom, I knew that what I was doing was valuable, but I needed to add things into my day to feel more successful. This quick tip helped guide my interactions with my son and helped encourage me to see the … [Read more...]